In the case of Texas v. Cobb...

The Supreme Court rules in favor of the state of Texas.


     This was not what I wanted to hear and it seemed as though the panel of judges I was appealing to was very biased. They made their minds up before the words, "Madame Chief Justice, may it please the court..." escaped my throat. My material for this case was only a half-page typed synopsis of the case--which I typed myself after throughly researching said case. (And that I hardly used because I knew my argument so well.) I held that my client, Raymond Levi Cobb, could not be legally sentenced to death because his Miranda rights were not read to him for his second offense. Just because the two charges were "factually related", they were separate offenses. For each separate offense I believe that the client needs to be read their Miranda rights. It only makes sense.
     But despite my arguing and such, I lost. I've been real mad about it all day, but it's okay. I have to give myself mad props for being able to change in class without ever showing a bit of skin. ;D (Well I showed some, like my arms, legs, and face but that was intended.)
     Today I also made Swedish Meatballs for dinner. They turned out quite well after slaving for an hour and a half. My favorite part about cooking dinner is that I don't have to wash the dishes. I feel a lot better today as opposed to yesterday. I mean, I didn't do much but what I did do, I did it well.
     I had a debate with Pablo on the school bus. He holds middle ground and is unconcerned with the world around him. When I asked him what he would do if our school enforced uniforms he replied, "I would go along with it." When I told him that every government subconsciously strives for total control (i.e. dictatorship) and that could happen in the United States if we keep giving up our personal liberties for security, he shrugged and said, "I would go along with it." Things got heated when I asked him his opinion on abortions--was he pro-life or pro-choice? His exact words were, "I guess I'm a little more pro-choice but either way it doesn't matter." I was appalled at is lack of opinion and moved to stress my position. "You do understand that with abortions legal that we are providing women a safe way to terminate an unwanted pregnancy, correct? Making abortion illegal would not only make it a crime to have an abortion, but the abortions that do occur would be much more dangerous for the women seeking to obtain them." "It doesn't matter," he started, "either way abortions are still going to happen." I became furious with his response, did he not care about the health and well-being of the women, let alone the potential children? Did it "not matter" that women who undeservedly or unpreparedly become pregnant would have to see dangerous means to terminate said pregnancy? Did it "not matter" that these unborn children may grow up in unstable homes that cannot support a child? Did it "not matter" what the woman wanted? We got off the bus and said that our argument would resume tomorrow. I don't whether I'm looking forward to arguing the importance of having something to stand for or despising it. I don't know whether I can convince him that all of his "my opinion doesn't matter" business is the kind of opinion that matters most, as the American population has little to no involvement in their government. That the corruptness of our country and political parties cannot be put to an end if we stand in line awaiting our doom. Sorry for this rant but this ignorance that Americans hold so dear is irritating.

After all,

"Those who surrender freedom for security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one." 

-Thomas Jefferson

Talentless, hopeless

Nothing I am able to do is talent. I have learned everything I know.
I play the vihuela and I play it well but I can't keep a tiempo for the life of me.
I play the keyboard, something that I learned while learning to read music.
It didn't just come to me, I had to learn it.
I cannot tune an instrument by ear nor can I play any song by ear.
I can play if I watch for chords, notes, and strumming patterns; if I study the player.
I can sing, but who can't?
In mariachi, everyone sang--even if you didn't.
My singing is rough and raw, hardly a talent.
All the Spanish I know is what I've learned from four years of schooling--I'm Mexican and Puerto Rican.
I cannot hum whilst whistling, that takes talent.
Something that I lack.
What I have are skills, the skills to get the job done.
And if I have a talent, I assume it's writing.
But my skills are like me, mediocre at best.
I can't even play Guitar Hero past meduim.
I'm creative, but that's more of a personality trait than a talent or skill.
But I'm told that I make people happy--is that a talent or a skill?
I'm easily liked because I know how to be myself--is that a talent or a skill?
But what talent do I possess?
I cannot think of a damn thing...

The Approaching Curve

"Our cracking voices became part of the music.
The car pressed on faster through the night. As our voices lowered,
The cadence again overtook the air.
Up ahead there was a curve approaching.
She made no indications of slowing."


     It's one of those days. I realize that I have a lot to do but I don't feel up to any of it at all. Instead of working on my solar system Powerpoint I'm here blogging about how I don't feel up to anything. Instead of doing further research with the Texas v. Cobb case, here I am blogging about how I'm not doing it. Instead of getting journalism work done, here I am blogging the same thing over and over again.
     This week is dragging on and I am dreading it. I feel as though I'm dragging along with it as well. It seems as though Friday will never come but what does that matter if Saturday and Sunday don't follow?


     I think my problem is that I am never the initiator--I am forever waiting for the river to flow but don't realize that I am standing at the foot of a large puddle. I am standing in the rain wondering why someone doesn't bring me an umbrella, when I am perfectly capable of doing it myself. I want everything to happen in a split second without me doing anything; which I recognize is near impossible.


     I can't keep myself happy and I wonder if it's a side effect the medicine I take. Or am I just this terrbily sad individual? And even if it is a side effect, what excuse is that to be sad? It seems like a pathetic one at that. (I just looked it up, depression and fatigue are side effects of said medication.) I don't know, I'm probably just overreacting about the whole thing. I just can't stop crying and I have no reason to be crying in the first place. I just want to hibernate or sleep so much that I die.

I know that's cynical but it is what I want right now.

One-hundred percent maybe

SDB: "Maybe, just maybe lol."
Me: "Lol but can you be sure?"
SDB: "Can you ever be sure?"
Me: "That's the only thing I can be sure of--that I won't ever be sure of anything besides being sure of being sure of nothing..."

(:

Exaggerated thought process and happy second birthday

     Maybe I overanalyze things but it's all for my benefit I believe. I'll get to that in a while, but first--politics. In government class, I have to argue that case of Texas v. Cobb 2001. An case in which Raymond Levi Cobb claimed that his Sixth Amendment right was violated when he was charged with a second trial--the murder of the woman and child--that was "factually related" to his first trial--1994 Cobb's confession to robbery and no knowledge of what happened to the woman and child. The right to counsel granted in the Sixth Amendment apply to cases "offense specific" not "factually related".
     Here's an example that you might understand easier: You took an expensive watch that belongs to one of your parents. They realize and question you about it. You admit it and return the watch but also mention to a friend that you got lucky and found some money. Much later your parent realizes that they hid a hundred dollar bill where you found the watch. They come and question you again but you don't think it is fair. They cannot use the fact that you were there and took the watch as means to accuse you of taking the money just because it seemed to be "factually related". Do you understand? I hope that was a good example because that is what I got out of it. (Click the title to see the brief of the court case.)
     Now back to my first statement. I'm the kind of person that sees every action or lack of action as a sign. For example, let's assume someone close to me gave me a piece of jewelry--a bracelet. If that bracelet was continually slipping off or broke, I would believe that something bad was going to happen or that our friendship was near it's end. Know what I mean? Well that might be overanalyzing because what if nothing happens? What if it's quite simply a broke bracelet? My need to assign a metaphor to every smidge of an event might just be clouding my mind. Or maybe it's true, who knows? Point being, do I overanalyze? Was this entire paragraph a ramble of over-analysis? Makes you think more than you want to, eh?
     Eventually it comes down to growing-up and seeing things as I hadn't seen them before. (I recommend reading my previous post if you haven't already.) I don't want to just have sex without substance. Without any emotional attachment, I don't feel like it would be as worth it as it should be. Or am I making to big of a deal out of that too? Ha ha ha. Hm, I'm not heartless and I want just what anyone would want, the simplicity of falling in love and having that person fall in love with me too. Then I think about the way I am thought about and wonder if that's how the future will be. Am I going to a single twenty-something year old, walking down the sidewalk, receiving looks that mean "I want your body"? It's so strange, I honestly never thought of graduating high school without the significant other with whom I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I guess that's my fault for believing it so much. And this train of thoughts leads me to believe that I'm going to end up alone, which is completely fine by me, as long as I have a child to love me when no one else will. It's kind of a cynical method of thinking, isn't it?

Maybe I'm just overanalyzing.

xD